The Best of High School Sports: The Winners

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(KNSI) – Local high school sports were upended by the coronavirus pandemic. The Minnesota State High School League canceled the fall sports season and threw into doubt the upcoming winter and spring sports seasons as COVID-19 cases surge schools move to distance learning models. KNSI Sports and our local business partners wanted to recognize the Best of Local High School Sports and had the listeners choose their favorites.

KNSI Sports and our local business partners wanted to recognize the Best of Local High School Sports, and you have chosen your favorites.

Across the eight school-focused categories, schools received a $250 donation to their athletic department for each category they win, plus the school with the most total votes across all categories received an additional $1000 donation for the athletic department.

Milaca was named the winner for Best Concession Food and Best Rivalry for Foley-Milaca Wrestling. Brian Julson, Activities Director and Dean of Students at Milaca, says the $500 donation is going right back to the kids.

“We to want to try to give it back to our kids and, you know, use this money to further activities for kids and options and so I will work with our admin team and we’ll try to figure out how best to use these funds but we really appreciate your sponsors and you guys at the radio station.”

Foley, as the other half of that long-standing rivalry, also received $250. Dean Dahmen, Activities Director for Foley, said the honor is “really cool.”

“I’m happy that the people participated and thankful for the sponsors and it’s a good thing to get people interested. Foley-Milaca wrestling has been a rivalry for a long time and, and this is definitely deserving of an award for all the blood sweat, and tears put in over the years so very appreciative and thankful. I’m going to turn it over to Scott [Gorecki] and his staff and whatever they need in the wrestling program, and just go from there. They earned it, so they might as well spend it.”

ROCORI cleaned up, winning Best Student Section, Best Mascot, Best State Championship Team, Best Local Sports Moment for the state championship-winning two-point conversion, and James Herberg winning Favorite Football Coach.

That means $2,250 for the activities department. ROCORI Activities Director Joel Baumgarten says the staff was so excited about the donation. He said he couldn’t wait to tell everyone.

“We were so excited. I put out an email immediately to all staff and onto social media, kind of bragging about it in a way, but we were just very proud of our, you know, seven different categories, and I know James [Herberg], and the football program really pushed, as well as our entire school so we’re really excited about it.”

Coach James Herberg says the honor was a welcome change.
“It’s awesome. I mean, especially given the times, there’s not a lot of positivity out there right now, and so the opportunity; first of all, I mean what a cool idea, and thank you to KNSI. Thank you to Lutgen Companies. I mean, this is really a cool thing given all the negativity that’s out there and a positive thing to bring all different kinds of community aspects together, and then obviously we’re really fortunate to have won so many categories, so we’re pretty jacked about that.”

Baumgarten explains what the school will do with the money.

“We’re very fortunate to get this money and we thank you for it. We are going to put it into a general coach’s account, and probably apply it toward weight room equipment.”

The winners are:
Best Student Section – Loud and Proud: ROCORI
Best Mascot: ROCORI Spartan
Best Rivalry: Milaca vs. Foley Wrestling
Best State Championship Team: 2019 ROCORI Football
Best Local Sports Moment: ROCORI Wins State Football Championship on Two-Point Conversion
Best Concession Food: Milaca – Heggie’s Pizza
Favorite Coach: ROCORI’s James Herberg
Best Home Field Advantage: Tech Tiger Stadium

Congratulations to all the nominees.

KNSI Sports Best of Local High School Sports is sponsored by:

American Door Works
C&D Granite
Line-X Protective Coatings & Truck Gear
Lutgen Companies
Manea’s Meats
McKay’s Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram Fiat
North Risk Partners
Pizza Hut
Scheels
StaFit